Geez Fred, great topic, wrong thread!I follow the wine thread but almost missed this one.

I can't recommend anything i've tried for Canadian sparkling wines (and i'm partly with michael_d on this one in which i'm not a huge fan of the sparkles).However, that being said, i HIGHLY recommend that you head to the local LCBO and look for Spanish Cava. Cava is essentially Spain's champagne, made in the traditional style, although typically with a grape varietal called Xarel-lo and hence not with the same grapes as in France Champagne (pinot noir, chardonnay and pinot meunier).Spanish cava is far less expensive than French Champagne BUT it is very much on par with quality in many price points. Cava was becoming all the rage in the past few years as Spanish wines are becoming more popular in N.America. The local sommeliers i chat with (and was trained by) speak highly of it.I have personally tried two Spanish cavas during my ISG course. One was fairly buttery and alot like any Champagne i've tasted in the past, including the oh so popular Dom Perignon.

_________________________"Those who preach the myths of audio are ignorant of truth."

Nicolas Feuillatte is the only one that doesn't give Ian a headache (one small flaw in an otherwise lovely man)

That's just funny.

Quote:

BTW, for an interesting change at Thanksgiving, I poured 2/3s champagne to 1/3 Cranberry wine (a Muskoka classic - they grow in Bala) and it was really lovely - tasty with Turkey and beautiful on the table.

It is one thing they say about sparkling wines, they can be paired with any course at a dinner.Personally i'm not a fan but...during the final test for the sommelier certification they have to plan out a full dinner including wine pairings and the one rule is that they are not allowed to use a sparkling one for more than one course...because it is again allegedly easy to pair it with everything.

Allegedly...

_________________________"Those who preach the myths of audio are ignorant of truth."

We attended a wine pairing seminar with Andrea Robinson when we were in Napa last. One of the pairings was the aforementioned Blanc de Blancs with air popped popcorn that was sprinkled with truffle salt. Amazing.... I had to get some truffle salt later, at $45 bucks for a little friggin jar..

While you are there, grab a bottle of the Cave Spring Riesling CSV (whatever year they have available at the LCBO). World class Riesling from Ontario.

I think that is the wine from them I picked up last year.

Originally Posted By: BlueJays1

BTW these are all Ontario wines.

Yup. We've come a long way in the last 25 years. In the 80s I had to go to the Okanogan to find a good Canadian wine.

I'll be spending a day over the holidays down in the Niagara area. I'll put Cave Springs on my list.

Cave Spring is one of the nicest vineyards in the Niagara Region. Beautiful location, top notch vineyard management. Too bad all you might see at this time of the year is some icewine still hanging.

I was up in Prince Edward County a few weeks ago and tried some wines. Not too bad! It was cool seeing the vineyard practices up there at this time of year with the much cooler climate than Niagara and how all the vineyards had their vines (trunk and the potential canes that would be kept after pruning) buried in soil to protect the buds from the harsh winter. That was neat.

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I’m armed and I’m drinking. You don’t want to listen to advice from me, amigo.

The day will still be fun. My daughter has just discovoured wine and has never done any wine tasting.

One of my nieces is dating a guy who's parents used to own a winery in Prince Edward county. I think his parents are still involved in the industry. I'll have to work on him for an insiders tour sometime.

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Fred

-------Blujays1: Spending Fred's money one bottle at a time, no two... Oh crap!

I finally made it to the booze store to peruse the bubblies and after all the recommendations I chose... none of them. Could not find one.

I think I did OK though. I briefly considered the $264 French champagne because, well, who wouldn't like to drink a $264 bottle of wine, but common sense got the better of me.

I remember somebody mentioning something about Spain so when I found the Neveran Perles Roses I figured I couldn't go wrong. The tasting notes were interesting and it did rate a respectable 89.

The second is a bottle from the Alsace. A Ruhlman Crement, D'Alsace. It has this nifty little sticker on it that says Concours 2011 MEDAILLE D'OR Colmar. While my French is not very good, I'm pretty sure it does not say Lump of Coal Award.

I'll let you know how they taste.

_________________________
Fred

-------Blujays1: Spending Fred's money one bottle at a time, no two... Oh crap!